Siren Beloved

Chapter Seventeen

Aidan stretched, his limbs much more eager to move after thirty minutes of yoga. He’d had a hot shower and a cup of coffee and was ready to start the day. Aidan stepped off the porch and started to head toward the barn. The early morning sky was a swirl of oranges and purples. It was quiet at this time of the morning. He knew he should be tired, but he’d woken before dawn with a joyful energy that had him ignoring the soreness of his muscles.

Everything was falling blissfully into place. Lexi was here, finally here. He couldn’t help but think about the child they had lost, but he had to be happy about the future. Lexi had agreed to marry him and Lucas. He was getting married.

Aidan felt a ridiculous grin cross his face. It didn’t matter who legally married Lexi. He actually had a thought about how to fix that little polyamorous tangle. Lucas didn’t have any real loyalty to his family. The last Aidan had heard, Senator Cameron was asking his constituents to help pray the gay out of his son. Lucas had one time mentioned changing his name to Barnes, because he felt more loyalty to Jack. But Aidan thought Lucas O’Malley had a certain ring. They were a family. They should share a name.

“Morning, boss.” One of his ranch hands, a middle-aged cowboy named Ron, was leading a big beautiful bay out of the horse barn.

Aidan nodded and tried not to look like a lovesick goofball because all he could think of were the two people he’d left peacefully sleeping in his bed. Lucas and Lexi were tucked in together, their limbs tangled. He hadn’t had the heart to wake them. “Morning, Ron. You seen my brother around?”

The cowboy put a boot in the stirrup and hauled himself easily into the saddle. “He was asleep when I got up. I know he was out late, so I didn’t figure it would hurt to let him sleep in. Dwight rides that boy hard, you know. Bo ain’t a bad kid. He tries.”

That was good to hear. Aidan had only really talked to Dwight for so long, and Dwight couldn’t stand Bo. It was good to hear someone say something nice about Bo. Aidan was willing to forgive and forget. Bo had had a hard time when their father died. It was time to move past it. “I know he tries. I think I’ll wake him up and have him work some with me this morning.”

Ron smiled down, adjusting his hat. “That sounds fine. I think that would be a good thing. He and Dwight are like oil and water, best to keep them apart. I’ll see you later, boss. I’m going to join Al and Barney in the east pasture. Oh, and there’s something wrong with the walkies, so if you need us, you’ll have to ride out.”

Dwight had everyone working the east pasture? It wasn’t what Aidan had planned for the day. The east pasture was the furthest away from the house. He would have to ride twenty minutes to call the men back in. What was wrong with his walkies? The cell service could be spotty that far out, but he made sure every ranch hand kept a radio on his person. He’d checked the system just the day before.

He needed to find Dwight.

In the distance, Aidan could hear Ike barking. Ike barked a lot. He barked at squirrels and passing cars, and anyone he didn’t immediately recognize. He sometimes barked at falling leaves. Aidan laughed. He wasn’t the smartest dog in the world, but he was loyal.

Ike kept barking as Aidan rounded the corner of the barn. He squinted, trying to see what had Ike’s attention. There was a mist coming off the pond where Aidan watered his horses. It coated the world in a hazy, surreal glow. Ike barked, his stubbed tail down. The dog’s whole body looked on edge, every muscle ready to attack.

A terrible pain bit into the back of Aidan’s head as his peripheral vision started to fade. Ike was barking at something in front of the bunkhouse. Over and over, the mangy dog was ceaseless in his warning. Just like…

Suddenly the mist wasn’t a mist anymore. It was a mixture of sand and dirt, whipping through the city. It had been so windy that day. They were on the outskirts of the city, the whole squad patrolling because the brass was sending in some major players and no one wanted a fuckup.

Aidan could hear it. The sound of spattered gunfire. It was just background noise in Fallujah. The world receded, and he was back in hell.

The heat was so much worse than anything Aidan had felt back in Texas. Of course, back in Texas he hadn’t had to carry fifty pounds of gear and wear ceramic-plated body armor. His feet bit into what passed for a road in this torn up, mottled part of the world. God, he wished he was home.

“Keep up, you green piece of shit.” The Sarge was staring at the soldier behind Aidan.

Aidan moved past the Sarge, who was spewing some serious venom at the new guy. PFC Creely had been with the squad for a month, but he was still the new guy, and the Sarge had taken an instant dislike to the soldier from Wyoming. It wasn’t surprising. Aidan had been damn sure the Sarge hated his guts, too. After a while, Sarge had let up and Aidan had just been a member of the team, but those first few weeks had been hell.

“You’re nothing but bullet bait,” Sarge yelled as PFC Creely jogged by. “Do you know that?”

For once Dwight seemed to know to keep his mouth shut. On more than one occasion, Dwight Creely had popped back at the CO and gotten his ass handed to him. If he didn’t watch out, he’d get thrown in the brig again. Dwight was rapidly becoming a certified brig rat.

“Take up your positions.”

The four snipers took off, jogging toward the burned-out building that always served as their perches, but the rest of the squad stayed together.

They had made it to the farthest point of their patrol—a wall that used to surround some sort of business. The building it guarded was in rubble, but the wall could be useful. Aidan took up his position on the west facing end of the wall. He would watch their backs, while the senior team members guarded the road. He set his M16 up and checked for anything out of the ordinary. There wasn’t a ton of cover here. Behind him, he could hear the rest of the squad setting up for the few hours they would be here.

Tanner, Mills, and Link were set up on the other side of the wall. Thompson stood at the back with the CO. It was just guard duty, but they had all had to hump it five clicks to get here. Aidan’s feet hurt, and he missed home. Hell, he didn’t give a shit about home. He missed them. Lexi and Lucas. It was getting easier and easier to admit that he missed Lucas, too.

“FTA.” Dwight was grumbling as he got into position beside Aidan. Aidan had a lot in common with the Wyoming boy. He came from a ranching family, but there was something about him that made Aidan hold back. Aidan was friendly enough with the man, but Dwight was always getting in trouble.

“Keep it down, soldier,” Aidan said under his breath. “You do not want Sarge hearing you say that.”

Fuck the Army. Aidan thought it, too, sometimes. Hell, there wasn’t a soldier alive who didn’t think it when the going got really rough and the CO was on your ass, but the Army was also a family. And when a soldier was in the middle of a mission, it wasn’t good luck.

“Maybe I don’t give a shit anymore,” Dwight muttered.

But Aidan could see he did. Dwight’s hands were shaking, and his face had flushed. He hadn’t seen a moment of combat, and Aidan got the feeling Dwight was really dreading it. Aidan had seen some light combat, but nothing like what others had been through.

“It’s going to be okay,” Aidan tried in an even voice. “Just stay calm and do the job. We don’t even know anyone’s going to try anything today. It’ll probably be smooth as glass. The bigwigs drive through, and then they’re someone else’s problem.”

Dwight’s eyes kept moving around. “I heard El Cid came in and talked to the Lieutenant.”

Aidan laughed. Dwight thought the CIA was behind this little mission? They were like the boogeyman. Everyone was afraid of the spooks because generally when the CIA got involved, it turned into a cluster fuck, and the lower pay grades were nothing but cannon fodder. The clerks at base loved to scare the shit out of newbies. “Don’t listen to the clerks. They love to gossip. This is totally routine. The General is making an appearance is all. Thompson, tell Creely here that we’ve done this duty a bunch of times, and no one’s died yet.”

PFC Thompson snorted. “Nope. We’re all alive, but you never know. Today could be our lucky day. Don’t you worry none, Creely. We’ll be back at base in time for whatever crap they’re serving tonight. God, I want to be home eating a cheesesteak.”

Aidan wanted to be home waiting on Lexi. She couldn’t cook to save her life, but she tried. Now, Lucas on the other hand, he was practically a freaking gourmet. The last weekend they had spent together, Lucas had put together a lasagna that Aidan could still taste on his tongue.

He had to keep his mind on the mission. He winked at Dwight, hoping it made him feel better. “This is a very safe part of the city. It’s constantly patrolled. We cleaned it out a long time ago. Seriously, who wants to be here? There’s not a goddamn thing out here.”

“Eyes front, soldiers.” Sarge walked behind them. He was a big, rough man, but he sighed as he stood behind Dwight. “O’Malley is right. It’s safe. We’ve done this several times. It’s a pain in the ass, but it’s fine. In twenty minutes, the convoy will move through, and we’ll hike it back.”

Aidan noticed how the CO shook his head as he walked away as though he knew Dwight shouldn’t be here at all. Aidan agreed. Dwight was a nice enough guy, but far too touchy for combat.

Aidan settled in. He would be in this position for a while. He let his eyes roam across the area they were protecting. Another squad was parked a mile down the road, further into the city. They had the more dangerous job. There were only two positions at this point. Guerilla Squad had a much more difficult position with buildings all around them, a hundred places for insurgents to hide.

He had another year. A whole year here before he had to go back and figure out what to do with his fucking life. Aidan was a good musician, but maybe not good enough. He’d played a bunch of gigs, but his guitar play was better than his vocals. He wondered what he would have done if that recording deal hadn’t fallen through the day after Armageddon. It was how he’d started referring to the night he’d spent fucking another man. It wasn’t just another man. It was Lucas, his best friend. And they hadn’t been alone. Lexi had been there. She hadn’t been shocked by it. Hell, she’d encouraged it. Her own mother was in the same kind of relationship.

They had made it work, Lexi’s mom and her two husbands. Jack Barnes was about as tough as a son of a bitch could get. He was a seriously scary motherfucker, but he was bisexual. Jack managed to have both Abby and Sam, and no one bothered him. And what would it matter if someone did? Why should he live his life and deny his own feelings because it bugged someone else? Why did he have to live by someone else’s rules when what he did would never harm anyone? How did loving someone make him less of a human being?

“Goddamn it, O’Malley.” The Sarge’s irritated huff brought Aidan out of his thoughts. “Your mutt’s here. I thought you tied him up.”

Aidan turned. Sure enough, Ike, the mutt he’d found starving on the roadside two days after he got to Fallujah, was trotting along as though out for a leisurely walk. His big tongue lolled out of his head, and he walked up, obviously waiting for a pat. Aidan leaned down and held out his hand. “What are you doing here, boy?”

There was the sound of distant gunfire. It came from the east, from the three story building in front of him. No mistaking the sound. Suddenly Sarge’s radio cracked to life, the sound splitting the air around them.

“Insurgents! At least five.”

Aidan knew the voice. It was Mike Garza, a corporal. He had led the snipers. The radio erupted with the rapid-fire explosions of a close-in firefight. Aidan’s heart clenched. His teammates, his friends, were fighting for their lives.

Suddenly the air around him exploded.

Bullets hit the dirt around him like lightning striking the ground.

“Fuck!” Dwight shouted beside him.

Someone started firing.

Aidan heard the Sarge yelling into the radio for help. Guerilla Squad was up the road, and they were on their way. Aidan hoped they had a medic with them, because Tanner was already down.

Aidan watched in horror as Sarge fell, a hole in his forehead. He’d shifted his helmet back, wiping sweat off his brow, and now he was gone. For a moment, Aidan couldn’t breathe. It seemed impossible. That building had been swept before by another squad who had proclaimed it safe and clean.

The world had slowed down, and Aidan felt locked in position.

Something struck his chest, sending him flying back, and he came out of his stupor. His heart raced. He had to do something.

Aidan brought the M-16 up and pulled the trigger, spattering the building with bullets. A body fell out of the window.

Chaos reigned. The ground around him exploded.

A stinging pain lashed at his face as a bullet whizzed by his head. He could feel the cuts and scrapes on his face begin to open. Blood began seeping from his cheeks, mingling with the sweat.

Aidan tried to focus. He dove for cover at the opposite wall. He sprang back up, trying to get a good line of sight.

His shoulder flew back as he took a bullet. Agony swept through him, but he remained on his feet.

The radio screamed out.

“Two men down. They’re dead—” There was a crack and then silence.

Aidan saw the glint of a gun from a broken out window. He aimed and fired. The gun, a freaking M-16—they were getting shot with their own weapons—fell to the ground below.

A sudden, shocking silence fell over the yard.

Aidan was pretty sure he could hear his heart beat. His hands shook. He ducked back down behind the wall, very aware now of a pain in his shoulder. Fuck. He’d been shot. He looked down at his body armor. The fucker had gotten him where he wasn’t protected, and now the armor was brushing against the wound. It was agonizing.

“You okay?” Specialist Charlie Link knelt down beside Aidan. They were covered by the wall, but an eerie silence had taken over.

“No.” Every word hurt. “I gotta get this armor off.”

“That’s a bad idea, O’Malley.”

“Please, it’s killing me. Guerilla Squad should be here any minute.” Aidan pulled at the fastenings of the body armor. It had saved his life, but now he couldn’t breathe in it. God, he couldn’t breathe.

Link quickly got the armor off, even as he protested the whole idea. Ike whined as he lay down beside Aidan. Aidan ran a hand over his body, checking for injuries. It looked like the dog had come out all right.

The minute the armor came off his body, he felt an immediate relief. His shoulder ached like a motherfucker, but he could breathe. Aidan took stock. The Sarge was dead. Aidan could barely comprehend it. Sarge was dead. Garza was almost certainly dead.

“Thompson?” Aidan asked.

Link shook his head.

“Tanner and Mills?”

Again, that tiny negative that indicated a wretched outcome.

“How?” Aidan had to ask. He knew the answer, but it seemed so ridiculous. How were they gone? Just minutes before, they were alive and joking. How could they be gone? It was supposed to be routine.

“Fucking Creely panicked.” Link’s voice was a mere whisper.

“What?” Aidan glanced over, and Dwight Creely was sitting with his back to the wall, his face a pasty white. He appeared to have vomited all over his armor.

Link’s mouth was tight as he whispered. “Keep quiet. I don’t think he’s in his right head. I tried to get his gun, and he damn near shot me. All I know is Tanner was beside me, and he was shot from behind. He took one in the neck. Creely didn’t jump for cover the way you and Thompson did. He just started shooting. He was behind us, so we were in his line of fire. That fucker is going to get court-martialed for sure.”

There was a loud crack, and Link’s body jerked. Link’s dark eyes stared down and Aidan watched in horror as the life drained from them. Ike got to his feet and started barking.

Link slipped to the ground, and Aidan’s eyes narrowed to Dwight Creely standing over him. His big body was a shadow, blocking the sun until all Aidan could see was the man and his gun.

“Stand down, soldier,” Aidan put a harsh bite to his voice, praying Creely would respond.

“I didn’t mean to.” Creely sounded like a petulant child. “It wasn’t my fault.”

A sick feeling took hold in Aidan’s gut. His body armor was just out of reach. Why the hell had he taken it off? He needed to keep this fucker talking until Guerilla Squad got here. “I understand that you panicked. But killing Link was murder, pure and simple.”

Dwight shook his head, his lips firming to a mulish pout. “I won’t go down for this. I am not going to fucking prison.”

Aidan’s M-16 was close, but he would have to reach for it. His shoulder ached, but he could do it. The radio squawked, announcing that Guerilla Squadron was five minutes away. It was too far.

“Sorry, O’Malley. You were the only one I would have called my friend. I have to make this look good, or my life is over.”

Aidan grabbed for his gun, but Dwight was faster. Dwight shot, and Aidan felt his hand explode with pain. His fingers. Fuck. Dwight had shot his hand, and now he couldn’t feel his fingers. Dwight shot again, and Aidan pulled his ruined hand in. Blood seemed to be coming from everywhere.

“I’m sorry.” But there was nothing but a brutal will on Dwight Creely’s face as he raised the M-16.

Aidan felt a horrible burning sensation in his stomach as the bullet entered. Aidan clutched his gut and rolled, trying to get away. Then there was another blast, and his whole body went numb. His back. He’d been shot in the back. There was another shot, but all Aidan got was a glimpse of Ike running as that fucker tried to shoot at him.

Aidan went still. It was easy since the lower half of his body no longer seemed to function. Through slitted eyes he watched as Dwight jogged across the road and disappeared into the building where the trouble had started. Aidan had a sense of him returning, but he shut his eyes and kept his breathing as shallow as possible.

Lexi was somewhere out there. He wondered if she was with Lucas. He wondered if anyone would bother to tell her that he had died. The sand beneath his face reminded him he wasn’t home. He wanted to be home. He didn’t want to die in this country.

“I’m here! Please help. They killed my whole squad. I’m the only one left, and I need a medic.” Dwight was yelling.

Ike was barking, but it seemed so far away.

Aidan started to float. He didn’t want to die. He wanted to be home with them. He should never have left. Never.

It didn’t matter. The world went dark, and he dreamed of the love he’d shoved away.

Aidan shook as he came out of the memory. Ike was still barking, just the way he had that day. It had been so real. He’d been there again. Dwight. Fucking Dwight had shot him. Dwight had killed two people that day, one on purpose, and he had nearly taken Aidan’s life. The betrayal of it all made his head spin.

Dwight might not have been cool under fire, but damn he’d been the epitome of grace under pressure after the fact. Aidan had read the reports. Insurgents had taken out the squad in close combat fighting. Several had been taken out by snipers, but one of the insurgents had made it behind the wall. It was all a lie, made up by Dwight to cover his tracks, but no one had been able to refute him.

Dwight had been fast. He must have dragged a body across the street. He’d been quick on his feet. Some of the injuries couldn’t have come from a distance. Dwight had set up a scenario with close-quarter fighting. The squad that saved them had moved quickly, because Aidan had still been alive. Coincidence had helped Dwight out as the team sent to investigate had been attacked, too. The area had been declared hot, and they hadn’t been able to get back in to investigate.

And the only person who could have turned the bastard in had forgotten the whole incident. Dwight had stayed close to make sure Aidan never told what had happened. That was why he’d been so insistent on making sure Aidan took his sleeping pills. Aidan dreamt about that day when he wasn’t on the drugs.

Damn it. It all made sense now. No one had really been after Lexi. She was just the bait to get Aidan to come home. He remembered the phone call right before Lexi had been shot. Dwight had wanted to know when he would be home. Dwight didn’t like it when Aidan left the ranch, because he couldn’t watch him. Dwight had shot at Lexi knowing Aidan would bring her back to the ranch to protect her. Aidan had walked right into Dwight’s trap.

“You remember, you son of a bitch.”

Aidan turned at the sound of Dwight’s voice, but it was too late. Dwight’s hand came down, and the butt of a rifle met Aidan’s skull.

The world went dark once again.